Historically, mindfulness interventions have not been responsive to the ways of being and knowing of non-white individuals. A new study focuses on identifying how a mindfulness-based intervention can better serve Latinx families.
To date, few mindfulness interventions have focused on the needs of Latinx children and their parents. A recent pilot study examined whether 27 families with 10- to 16-year-old youth who engaged in a community-derived mindfulness intervention would experience less stress and greater mindfulness, emotion regulation, and social support than a non-intervention control group.
Latinx parents who took part in a mindfulness intervention reported significantly less stress, and their children noted feeling greater social support from family members.
In response to community feedback, the intervention was delivered to groups of parents and children in seven weekly 1-hour sessions in both English and Spanish. It included instruction on mindfulness, stress reduction, and other life and relationship skills. Following the intervention, parents in the mindfulness group reported significantly less stress, and their children noted feeling greater social support from family members than those in the control group.